Antony and Cleopatra

Original Text

Modern Text

CANIDIUS marcheth with his land army
one way over the stage, and TAURUS, the lieutenant of
CAESAR, the other way. After their going in is heard
the noise of a sea fight

CANIDIUS and his army marches one way
across the stage while CAESAR’s lieutenant,
TAURUS, marches across the other way. After the two
armies march off stage, the noise of a battle at sea is
heard.

Alarum. Enter
ENOBARBUS

Trumpets sound a retreat. ENOBARBUS
enters.

ENOBARBUS

Naught, naught, all naught! I can behold no longer.

Th’ Antoniad, the
Egyptian admiral,

With all their sixty, fly and turn the rudder.

To see ’t mine eyes are blasted.

ENOBARBUS

We’re ruined, ruined, ruined! I can’t watch any more. The Egyptian
flagship, the Antoniad, followed by
all sixty Egyptian ships, has turned and fled. It destroyed my eyes
to look upon it.

Enter SCARUS

SCARUS enters.

5

SCARUS

Gods
and goddesses,

All the whole synod of them!

SCARUS

Gods and goddesses—the whole congregation of them!

ENOBARBUS

What’s
thy passion?

ENOBARBUS

What’s wrong with you?

SCARUS

The greater cantle of the world is lost

With very ignorance. We have kissed away

Kingdoms and provinces.

SCARUS

We have lost a major portion of the world through utter
foolishness. We have kissed away entire kingdoms and
provinces.

ENOBARBUS

How appears the
fight?

ENOBARBUS

How goes the battle?

10

15

SCARUS

On our side like the tokened pestilence,

Where death is sure. Yon ribaudred nag of
Egypt—

Whom leprosy o’ertake!—i’ th’ midst o’ th’ fight,

When vantage like a pair of twins appeared

Both as the same, or rather ours the elder,

The breeze upon her, like a cow in June,

Hoists sails and flies.

SCARUS

Our side shows all the signs of certain defeat, which appear like
the symptomatic sores of the plague. Right in the middle of the
fight, just when the battle could have gone either way—actually we
had a slight advantage—that immoral Egyptian nag—May she die of
leprosy!—suddenly became frightened, and turned her ships around and
fled.